The European Journal of Public Health Advance Access published online on June 18, 2008
The European Journal of Public Health, doi:10.1093/eurpub/ckn050
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Longitudinal effects of the European smoking prevention framework approach (ESFA) project in Spanish adolescents
Carles Ariza1,2, Manel Nebot1,2, Zoa Tomás1, Emmanuel Giménez1, Sara Valmayor1, Visitación Tarilonte3 and Hein De Vries4
1 Evaluation and Intervention Methods Service, Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona (Public Health Agency, Barcelona)
2 CIBER in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Spain
3 Personal Services Division, Barcelona Council, Barcelona, Spain
4 Health Education Department, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
Correspondence: Carles Ariza, Evaluation and Intervention Methods Service, Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona (Public Health Agency, Barcelona), Pl. Lesseps 1, 08023 Barcelona, Spain, tel: +34 932 027743, fax: +34 932 921443, e-mail: cariza{at}aspb.es
Received October 25, 2007 , accepted May 2, 2008
Background: To describe the effects of a Spanish smoking prevention programme in the context of an European project on regular smoking, in a sample of Barcelona adolescents. Method: A quasi-experimental design was conducted. An experimental group (EG) (1080 pupils) was exposed to programme and compared with a control group (CG) (872 students). The intervention included a school-based programme (16 sessions in 3 years), reinforcement of a smoke-free school policy, smoking cessation for teachers, brochures for parents and other community-based activities involving youth clubs and tobacco sales. Results: At 12 months, 4.5% of boys and 5.6% of girls were new smokers in the EG versus 6.7% and 11.7% in the CG (P < 0.001). At 36 months, 18.6% of boys and 31.2% of girls in the EG were regular smokers versus 21.6% of boys and 38.3% of girls in the CG (P < 0.001). The main factors associated with progression to regular smoking at 36 months were to be girl, to attend to a public school and to belong to the CG. Conclusion: These results endorse the effectiveness of multi-modal smoking prevention programmes, which include strategies with adults who influence adolescents.
Keywords: adolescence, effect evaluation, multi-modal programme, smoking prevention